A seat of success!
From providing seating for wheelchairs to an orphange in Belarus to enhancing the quality of life for disabled people throughout Ireland and the UK, a small company in Grange is making its mark on the world.
“The smile factor is the real perk of the job,” etnhuses Luke Conway, the founder of LC Seating, reflecting on the difference the company’s products can make to people in difficult health circumstances.
“There is a great sense of achievement knowing that you have improved someone’s life. This can be as simple as a smile from a child that is using our product,” he explains.
Established in 2008, LC Seating is one of only two companies in Ireland supplying custom made seating for wheelchairs. Catering for a very specialist market, the company provides mobility products including manual and powered wheelchairs, stair lifts and daily living aids, specialising in custom made seating.
“The company was set up specifically to provide products for a niche area that I identified after working for the NHS in Belfast and then for a private company in the mobility field. We also import a range of wheelchair accessories from the US and distribute these throughout Ireland and the UK,” Luke outlines.
LC Seating sells directly to the HSE, the National Health Service in the UK and public and private companies, and, with backing from the County Enterprise Boards Tradelinks Programme, is planning to expand its market.
“Our field research, supported by Tradelinks, identified potential for a specialised retail outlet. That’s the next stage of our expansion as we plan to open a public retail area for mobility products. Another part of our development plan is to begin manufacturing our own custom made seating,” he says. These expansions will lead to the creation of two more jobs to compliment the three employees already working with the firm.
The company also runs recognised seating courses in Sligo in conjunction with the community Sligo General Hospital Occupational Therapy Department, a service which has been offered free of charge to clinics throughout Ireland.
Enthusiastic about the Tradelinks Programme, Luke says his involvement with the programme has given him the confidence to expand the business.
“The mentoring service focused on the key areas of our business that are performing well and highlighted areas that needed to be improved. We worked with Tradelinks to draw up sound business plans for the next stages of our development,” Luke reports.